US20160247388A1 - Vehicular assistance device, program product, and assistance information reception method - Google Patents
Vehicular assistance device, program product, and assistance information reception method Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20160247388A1 US20160247388A1 US15/033,052 US201415033052A US2016247388A1 US 20160247388 A1 US20160247388 A1 US 20160247388A1 US 201415033052 A US201415033052 A US 201415033052A US 2016247388 A1 US2016247388 A1 US 2016247388A1
- Authority
- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- facility
- information
- assistance
- user
- side device
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Granted
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Classifications
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- G—PHYSICS
- G08—SIGNALLING
- G08C—TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS FOR MEASURED VALUES, CONTROL OR SIMILAR SIGNALS
- G08C17/00—Arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless electrical link
- G08C17/02—Arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless electrical link using a radio link
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60C—VEHICLE TYRES; TYRE INFLATION; TYRE CHANGING; CONNECTING VALVES TO INFLATABLE ELASTIC BODIES IN GENERAL; DEVICES OR ARRANGEMENTS RELATED TO TYRES
- B60C23/00—Devices for measuring, signalling, controlling, or distributing tyre pressure or temperature, specially adapted for mounting on vehicles; Arrangement of tyre inflating devices on vehicles, e.g. of pumps or of tanks; Tyre cooling arrangements
- B60C23/02—Signalling devices actuated by tyre pressure
- B60C23/04—Signalling devices actuated by tyre pressure mounted on the wheel or tyre
- B60C23/0408—Signalling devices actuated by tyre pressure mounted on the wheel or tyre transmitting the signals by non-mechanical means from the wheel or tyre to a vehicle body mounted receiver
- B60C23/0422—Signalling devices actuated by tyre pressure mounted on the wheel or tyre transmitting the signals by non-mechanical means from the wheel or tyre to a vehicle body mounted receiver characterised by the type of signal transmission means
- B60C23/0433—Radio signals
- B60C23/0435—Vehicle body mounted circuits, e.g. transceiver or antenna fixed to central console, door, roof, mirror or fender
- B60C23/0438—Vehicle body mounted circuits, e.g. transceiver or antenna fixed to central console, door, roof, mirror or fender comprising signal transmission means, e.g. for a bidirectional communication with a corresponding wheel mounted receiver
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60C—VEHICLE TYRES; TYRE INFLATION; TYRE CHANGING; CONNECTING VALVES TO INFLATABLE ELASTIC BODIES IN GENERAL; DEVICES OR ARRANGEMENTS RELATED TO TYRES
- B60C23/00—Devices for measuring, signalling, controlling, or distributing tyre pressure or temperature, specially adapted for mounting on vehicles; Arrangement of tyre inflating devices on vehicles, e.g. of pumps or of tanks; Tyre cooling arrangements
- B60C23/02—Signalling devices actuated by tyre pressure
- B60C23/04—Signalling devices actuated by tyre pressure mounted on the wheel or tyre
- B60C23/0408—Signalling devices actuated by tyre pressure mounted on the wheel or tyre transmitting the signals by non-mechanical means from the wheel or tyre to a vehicle body mounted receiver
- B60C23/0479—Communicating with external units being not part of the vehicle, e.g. tools for diagnostic, mobile phones, electronic keys or service stations
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- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01C—MEASURING DISTANCES, LEVELS OR BEARINGS; SURVEYING; NAVIGATION; GYROSCOPIC INSTRUMENTS; PHOTOGRAMMETRY OR VIDEOGRAMMETRY
- G01C21/00—Navigation; Navigational instruments not provided for in groups G01C1/00 - G01C19/00
- G01C21/26—Navigation; Navigational instruments not provided for in groups G01C1/00 - G01C19/00 specially adapted for navigation in a road network
- G01C21/34—Route searching; Route guidance
- G01C21/36—Input/output arrangements for on-board computers
- G01C21/3697—Output of additional, non-guidance related information, e.g. low fuel level
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- G07C9/00031—
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- G—PHYSICS
- G08—SIGNALLING
- G08G—TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEMS
- G08G1/00—Traffic control systems for road vehicles
- G08G1/01—Detecting movement of traffic to be counted or controlled
- G08G1/017—Detecting movement of traffic to be counted or controlled identifying vehicles
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- G—PHYSICS
- G08—SIGNALLING
- G08G—TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEMS
- G08G1/00—Traffic control systems for road vehicles
- G08G1/14—Traffic control systems for road vehicles indicating individual free spaces in parking areas
- G08G1/141—Traffic control systems for road vehicles indicating individual free spaces in parking areas with means giving the indication of available parking spaces
- G08G1/143—Traffic control systems for road vehicles indicating individual free spaces in parking areas with means giving the indication of available parking spaces inside the vehicles
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- G—PHYSICS
- G08—SIGNALLING
- G08G—TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEMS
- G08G1/00—Traffic control systems for road vehicles
- G08G1/14—Traffic control systems for road vehicles indicating individual free spaces in parking areas
- G08G1/141—Traffic control systems for road vehicles indicating individual free spaces in parking areas with means giving the indication of available parking spaces
- G08G1/144—Traffic control systems for road vehicles indicating individual free spaces in parking areas with means giving the indication of available parking spaces on portable or mobile units, e.g. personal digital assistant [PDA]
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- G—PHYSICS
- G08—SIGNALLING
- G08G—TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEMS
- G08G1/00—Traffic control systems for road vehicles
- G08G1/14—Traffic control systems for road vehicles indicating individual free spaces in parking areas
- G08G1/145—Traffic control systems for road vehicles indicating individual free spaces in parking areas where the indication depends on the parking areas
- G08G1/146—Traffic control systems for road vehicles indicating individual free spaces in parking areas where the indication depends on the parking areas where the parking area is a limited parking space, e.g. parking garage, restricted space
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
- H04W12/00—Security arrangements; Authentication; Protecting privacy or anonymity
- H04W12/08—Access security
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
- H04W4/00—Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
- H04W4/02—Services making use of location information
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
- H04W4/00—Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
- H04W4/02—Services making use of location information
- H04W4/021—Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
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- H04W4/046—
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
- H04W4/00—Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
- H04W4/30—Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
- H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
- H04W4/00—Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
- H04W4/30—Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes
- H04W4/40—Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
Definitions
- the present disclosure relates to a vehicular assistance device, a program product, and an assistance information reception method, each of which performs a wireless communication with a facility-side device installed at a facility to receive assistance information useful to a user from the facility-side device.
- the parking area system is configured so that, when a vehicle approaches a facility (e.g., parking area or shop), an in-vehicle device transmits a user ID, which is used for identifying a user, to a facility-side device.
- a facility-side device confirms the user ID
- the facility-side device transmits information associated with the user to the in-vehicle device.
- the information associated with a user includes information to provide leading customers with special parking spaces, special benefit information, and information from shops that meet preferences of users extracted from the Internet usage history (e.g., see patent literature 1 ).
- these kinds of information will be referred to as assistance information because the information is useful to users (that is, the information supports users).
- the prior-art parking area system may allow the in-vehicle device to transmit a user ID to an invalid access point (hereinafter referred to as an “unauthorized access point”) in response to a transmission request from the unauthorized access point.
- the user ID also provides, to the unauthorized access point, information capable of specifying behavior of the user or the vehicle. The information may be abused by a third party that installed the unauthorized access point.
- a vehicular assistance device which is equipped to a vehicle, includes a facility ID reception portion, an area information acquisition portion, a position information acquisition portion, a determination portion, and a user ID transmission portion.
- the vehicular assistance device performs a wireless communication with a facility-side device that transmits assistance information useful to a user, and the vehicular assistance device receives the assistance information from the facility-side device.
- the facility ID reception portion receives a facility ID from the facility-side device.
- the facility ID is used for identifying a facility to which the facility-side device is installed.
- the area information acquisition portion acquires area information related to a position of the facility.
- the position information acquisition portion acquires position information of the vehicle.
- the determination portion when the facility ID reception portion receiving the facility ID from the facility-side device, determines whether the received facility ID is valid or not based on the position information of the vehicle and the area information that is related to the position of the facility corresponding to the received facility ID.
- the user ID transmission portion under a condition that the determination portion determines that the received facility ID is valid, transmits, to the facility-side device, a user ID as a request for transmitting the assistance information, and the user ID being used for identifying the user.
- the position of the facility based on the facility ID may be determined to differ from the current position of the vehicle in the vehicular assistance device.
- the vehicular assistance device does not transmit the request (containing user ID) requiring transmitting of the assistance information to the unauthorized access point.
- the vehicular assistance device which receives the assistance information from the facility-side device, information leakage to a third party can be suppressed.
- the vehicular assistance device when the current position of the vehicle is determined to be included in the setup range including the position of the facility identified by the received facility ID, the facility is determined to be the valid facility.
- the vehicular assistance device does not transmit a request (containing user ID) requiring a transmitting of the assistance information to any one unauthorized access point outside the setup range. This can appropriately prevent the information from leaking to a third party.
- a program product which is stored in a non-transitory tangible computer readable storage medium and can be distributed to the market, includes instructions performed by a computer for controlling the computer to function as the facility ID reception portion, the area information acquisition portion, the position information acquisition portion, the determination portion, and the user ID transmission portion included in the vehicular assistance device according to the first aspect of the present disclosure.
- an assistance information reception method which enables a vehicular assistance device equipped to a vehicle to perform a wireless communication with a facility-side device.
- the facility-side device transmits assistance information useful to a user and the vehicular assistance device receives the assistance information from the facility-side device.
- the assistance information reception method includes a facility ID reception step receiving a facility ID from the facility-side device and the facility ID being used for identifying a facility to which the facility-side device is installed, an area information acquisition step acquiring area information related to a position of the facility, a position information acquisition step acquiring position information of the vehicle, a determination step, when the facility ID is received from the facility-side device in the facility ID reception step, determining whether the received facility ID is valid or not based on the position information of the vehicle and the area information that is related to the position of the facility corresponding to the received facility ID, and a user ID transmission step, under a condition that the received facility ID is determined to be valid in the determination step, transmitting, to the facility-side device, a user ID as a request for transmitting the assistance information and the user ID being used for identifying the user.
- FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an entire configuration of a system including a vehicular assistance device
- FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating a setup range of a facility
- FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the vehicular assistance device and a facility-side device
- FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an assistance information transmission process performed by the facility-side device.
- FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an assistance information reception process performed by the vehicular assistance device.
- a parking area system 1 as an embodiment of a vehicular system including a vehicular assistance device according to the present disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings.
- the parking area system 1 includes a vehicular assistance device 2 equipped to a vehicle 20 , a facility-side device 3 installed at a facility 30 , and a server 4 provided on the Internet.
- the facility-side device 3 transmits assistance information or information useful to users (i.e., information to support users) to the vehicular assistance device 2 by performing a wireless communication between the vehicular assistance device 2 and the facility-side device 3 .
- the assistance information includes information to provide leading customers with special parking spaces, special benefit information, and information from shops that meet preferences of users extracted from the Internet usage history. Providing such information to users can give favors to the users and improve an ability to attract more customers to the facility 30 .
- the facility-side device 3 transmits the assistance information to the vehicular assistance device 2 , which is equipped to the vehicle 20 .
- the assistance information is notified to a user (e.g., a driver) of the vehicle 20 who passes by an area near the facility 30 before passing by the facility.
- a manager of the facility 30 can freely set the predetermined distance within which the assistance information is distributed. Setting the predetermined distance prescribes a range of place that contains the position of the facility 30 and is capable of transmitting the assistance information from the facility-side device 3 to the vehicular assistance device 2 . This range is hereinafter referred to as a “setup range.”
- the vehicle 20 is equipped with a tire pressure monitoring system (hereinafter referred to as “TPMS”).
- TPMS tire pressure monitoring system
- sensor transmitter SS is installed inside a tire or a wheel.
- Sensor transmitter SS detects an air pressure or a temperature of the tire.
- Information (hereinafter referred to as “tire air pressure information”) indicating a detection result is periodically and wirelessly transmitted to a communication unit CR disposed in the vehicle.
- sensor transmitter SS functions as a tire air pressure information transmission portion.
- the communication unit CR is connected to a navigation system 6 included in the vehicular assistance device 2 .
- the navigation system 6 may determine that the air pressure does not satisfy a reference value, based on the tire air pressure information received via communication unit CR. In such a case, the navigation system 6 alerts a user using a display device or an audio output device (unshown).
- access point AP is configured to be able to receive the tire air pressure information transmitted from the sensor transmitter SS.
- the tire air pressure information simply indicates the air pressure, the temperature, or the location of a tire. In the present disclosure, suppose that the tire air pressure information does not contain information related to the user or the vehicle 20 .
- the navigation system 6 is connected with the mobile communication unit MC, which is connected to a mobile telephone network (unshown).
- the mobile communication unit MC is able to connect to the Internet network through the mobile telephone network.
- users can browse through homepages available on the Internet, for example.
- the server 4 includes a center server 4 a and a facility server 4 b.
- the facility server 4 b publishes a homepage of the facility 30 on the Internet.
- the homepage of the facility 30 is published as an EC site and contains various information related to shops such as merchandise supplied from the shops in the facility 30 .
- a user may browse through web pages using the navigation system 6 or various terminals such as a mobile phone, a smartphone, and a PC. Then, the terminal transmits information (hereinafter referred to as “browse information”) indicating the user's browsing action to the facility server 4 b.
- the facility server 4 b receives the browse information from the user's terminal and stores the Internet usage history based on the browse information corresponding to a user ID.
- the user ID provides information to identify the user and may be used to log in to the homepage of the facility 30 .
- the user's terminal transmits the user ID together with the browse information to the facility server 4 b.
- the center server 4 a collects information needed to operate the parking area system 1 .
- the center server 4 a stores information (hereinafter referred to as “area information”) indicating the setup range and setup intensity (to be described later) in addition to the assistance information as a database corresponding to each facility 30 (facility ID to be described later).
- area information information indicating the setup range and setup intensity (to be described later) in addition to the assistance information as a database corresponding to each facility 30 (facility ID to be described later).
- a facility manager is in charge of updating the assistance information and the area information.
- the center server 4 a preliminarily registers information related to a user such as the user ID.
- the information related to users is hereinafter referred to as “user information.”
- the user information contains a telephone number assigned to mobile communication unit MC as well as the user ID.
- the center server 4 a transmits an update request (to be described later) to all mobile communication units MC contained in the user information.
- the center server 4 a can acquire information such as the Internet usage history concerning each user from the facility server 4 b via the Internet network and store the acquired information.
- the communication unit CR supplies the navigation system 6 with the tire air pressure information received from the sensor transmitter SS.
- the communication unit CR uses Near Field Communication so as to be capable of exchanging various kinds of information with the access points AR
- the map DB 21 may be provided by a hard disk drive.
- the map DB 21 stores map data used in the navigation system 6 together with the area information and the position information of the facility 30 corresponding to information used for identifying the facility 30 (hereinafter, information for identifying the facility is referred to as “facility ID”) .
- the storage 23 is provided by a nonvolatile memory and stores a program performed by the controller 22 according to the present embodiment.
- the controller 22 includes a microcomputer 22 a and a measuring circuit 22 b.
- the microcomputer 22 a includes a CPU, ROM, and RAM.
- the measuring circuit 22 b measures the radio field strength (reception strength) when communication unit CR receives a wireless signal transmitted from the access point AR
- the microcomputer 22 a performs an assistance information reception process (to be described later) based on a program stored in the storage 23 .
- the facility-side device 3 includes a network interface (hereinafter referred to as a “network IF”) 31 , a timer 32 , a controller 33 , and a storage 34 in addition to the access point AP described above.
- the network IF 31 provides a connection to the Internet network.
- the timer 32 measures the time elapsed after the access point AP transmits a facility ID toward outside.
- the controller 33 includes a microcomputer 33 a.
- the storage 34 stores a program performed by the controller 33 .
- the microcomputer 33 a performs an assistance information transmission process described below based on a program stored in the storage 34 .
- the microcomputer 33 a in the facility-side device 3 proceeds to S 10 and determines whether or not tire air pressure information is received via the access point AP. If determining that the tire air pressure information is received (S 10 ; YES), the microcomputer 33 a proceeds to S 20 . If determining that the tire air pressure information is not received (S 10 ; NO), the microcomputer enters a wait state.
- the microcomputer 33 a transmits a wireless signal to the outside from the access point AR
- the wireless signal contains the facility ID of the facility 30 to which the facility-side device 3 is installed.
- the microcomputer 33 a determines whether or not the elapsed time (after transmission of the facility ID from the access point AP to the outside at S 20 ) measured by the timer 32 exceeds a predetermined wait time. If determining that the elapsed time exceeds the predetermined wait time (S 30 ; YES), the microcomputer 33 a returns to S 10 . If determining that the elapsed time does not exceed the predetermined wait time (S 30 ; NO), the microcomputer 33 a proceeds to S 40 .
- the microcomputer 33 a determines whether a transmission request for the assistance information is received via the access point AP from the vehicular assistance device 2 . If determining that the request for transmitting the assistance information is received (S 40 ; YES), the microcomputer 33 a proceeds to S 50 . If determining that the request for transmitting the assistance information is not received (S 40 ; NO), the microcomputer 33 a returns to S 30 .
- a user ID is contained in the request for transmitting the assistance information which is received at S 30 .
- the microcomputer 33 a wirelessly transmits the assistance information associated with the user ID to the vehicular assistance device 2 and returns to S 10 .
- the microcomputer 33 a transmits an instruction to the center server 4 a connected to the Internet network via the network IF 31 in order to wirelessly transmit the assistance information associated with the user ID, which is received at S 30 , to the vehicular assistance device 2 .
- the instruction contains the facility ID of the facility 30 where the facility-side device 3 is installed.
- the center server 4 a selects assistance information appropriate to the user ID out of the assistance information corresponding to the facility ID.
- the assistance information appropriate to the user ID includes information to provide a special parking space for a leading customer or information from a shop suited for user preferences extracted from the special benefit information or the Internet usage history.
- the center server 4 a Based on user information corresponding to the user ID, the center server 4 a transmits the selected assistance information to the mobile communication unit MC of the vehicular assistance device 2 .
- the description below explains the assistance information reception process performed by the microcomputer 22 a of the vehicular assistance device 2 .
- the assistance information reception process starts as illustrated in FIG. 4 .
- the microcomputer 22 a of the vehicular assistance device 2 determines whether or not an update request is received from the center server 4 a via mobile communication unit MC. If determining that the update request is received (S 110 ; YES), the microcomputer 22 a proceeds to S 120 . If determining that the update request is not received (S 110 ; NO), the microcomputer 22 a proceeds to S 130 .
- the microcomputer 22 a transmits a transmission request, which request for the transmitting of the updated area information, to the center server 4 a via mobile communication unit MC.
- the center server 4 a transmits the area information (containing the facility ID).
- the microcomputer 22 a receives the area information via mobile communication unit MC and uses the received area information to update the area information (corresponding to the received facility ID) stored in the map DB 21 .
- the microcomputer 22 a determines whether or not communication unit CR receives a wireless signal containing the facility ID from the access point AP. If determining that the facility ID is received (S 130 ), the microcomputer 22 a proceeds to S 140 . If determining that the facility ID is not received (S 130 ; NO), the microcomputer 22 a returns to S 110 .
- the microcomputer 22 a outputs, to the navigation system 6 , a request for acquiring the position information of the vehicle 20 from the navigation system 6 .
- the microcomputer 22 a reads, from the map DB 21 , the area information corresponding to the facility ID received at S 130 .
- the microcomputer 22 a determines whether or not the detected current position of the vehicle 20 is included in the setup range indicated by the area information, based on the position information acquired at S 140 and the area information read at S 150 . If determining that the vehicle 20 is positioned within the setup range (S 160 ; YES), the microcomputer 22 a proceeds to S 170 . If determining that the vehicle 20 is positioned outside the setup range (S 160 ; NO), the microcomputer 22 a returns to S 110 .
- the microcomputer 22 a reads out, from the measuring circuit 22 b, the reception strength of the wireless signal received at S 130 , and determines whether or not the reception strength is stronger than or equal to a predetermined setup intensity, based on the area information read at S 150 .
- the microcomputer 22 a proceeds to S 180 . If determining that the reception strength is weaker than the setup intensity (S 170 ; NO), the microcomputer 22 a returns to S 110 .
- the setup intensity is predetermined based on a predetermined distance (see FIG. 1B ) and is used as a second index to determine whether or not the current position of the vehicle 20 is detected within the setup range indicated by the area information.
- the relation between the reception strength and the distance (between access point AP and the vehicle 20 ) varies with each vehicle 20 or situations around the vehicle 20 .
- the microcomputer 22 a may variably set the setup intensity or correct the reception strength based on the radio field strength (the strength of a radio wave received from a base station) of mobile communication unit MC.
- the microcomputer 22 a determines that the facility ID received at S 130 is valid ID.
- the microcomputer 22 a allows communication unit CR to externally transmit a wireless signal containing the user ID as a request to transmit the assistance information.
- the microcomputer 22 a allows communication unit CR to receive the assistance information from the facility-side device 3 .
- the microcomputer 22 a outputs an instruction to notify a user of the received assistance information on the navigation system 6 and returns to S 110 .
- a display device or an audio output device included in the navigation system 6 notifies the user of the assistance information.
- the vehicular assistance device 2 when the vehicular assistance device 2 receives, from the access point AP, a facility ID used for identifying the facility 30 to which the facility-side device 3 is installed, the vehicular assistance device 2 determines whether or not the facility ID is valid, based on the area information related to the facility 30 corresponding to the facility ID and the position information of the vehicle 20 .
- the vehicular assistance device 2 transmits a request (containing user ID) for transmitting the assistance information to access point AP under a condition that the facility ID is determined to be valid.
- an invalid access point (unauthorized access point) transmits a facility ID to the vehicular assistance device 2 .
- the position of the facility 30 based on the facility ID may be determined to differ from the current position of the vehicle 20 in the vehicular assistance device 2 .
- the vehicular assistance device 2 does not transmit the request (containing user ID) for transmitting the assistance information to the unauthorized access point. This can prevent the information from leaking to an unauthorized third party.
- the parking area system 1 determines whether a facility ID is valid or not when the vehicular assistance device 2 determines that the current position of the vehicle 20 is detected within the setup range containing the position of the facility 30 based on the facility ID.
- the vehicular assistance device 2 does not transmit a request (containing user ID) for transmitting the assistance information to any one unauthorized access point outside the setup range. This can appropriately prevent the information from leaking to a third party.
- the vehicular assistance device 2 determines whether or not the reception strength of a wireless signal transmitted from access point AP is stronger than or equal to the setup intensity.
- the parking area system 1 determines the facility ID to be invalid when the reception strength is weaker than the setup intensity.
- the parking area system 1 double-checks the determination whether or not the current position of the vehicle 20 is detected within the setup range, namely, based on the determination using the position information of the vehicle 20 and the determination using the reception strength of a wireless signal. This can mutually complement errors differing in both determinations and consequently improve the accuracy to determine the facility ID.
- the parking area system 1 predetermines the area information indicating the setup range or the setup intensity for each facility 30 .
- the area information is stored in the center server 4 a on the Internet and is delivered to the vehicular assistance device 2 each time the area information is updated.
- the manager of the facility 30 can easily change the area information, improving the degree of freedom in settings.
- the parking area system 1 detects the vehicle 20 by using TPMS installed to the vehicle 20 and allowing access point AP to receive the tire air pressure information which is always transmitted from sensor transmitter SS. Thus, there is no need to add an additional configuration to the facility-side device 3 of the parking area system 1 as an image sensor for detecting the vehicle 20 that approaches the facility 30 .
- the process at S 130 performed by the microcomputer 22 a functions as a facility ID reception portion.
- the process at S 120 and S 150 performed by the microcomputer 22 a functions as an area information acquisition portion.
- the process at S 140 performed by the microcomputer 22 a functions as a position information acquisition portion.
- the process at S 160 through S 180 performed by the microcomputer 22 a functions as a determination portion.
- the process at S 190 performed by the microcomputer 22 a functions as a user ID transmission portion.
- a flowchart or the processing of the flowchart in the present disclosure includes sections (also referred to as steps), each of which is represented, for instance, as S 10 . Further, each section can be divided into several sub-sections while several sections can be combined into a single section. Furthermore, each of thus configured sections can be also referred to as a circuit, device, module, or means.
- each or any combination of sections explained in the above can be achieved as (i) a software section in combination with a hardware unit (e.g., computer) or (ii) a hardware section, including or not including a function of a related apparatus; furthermore, the hardware section (e.g., integrated circuit, hard-wired logic circuit) may be constructed inside of a microcomputer.
- a hardware unit e.g., computer
- a hardware section including or not including a function of a related apparatus
- the hardware section e.g., integrated circuit, hard-wired logic circuit
- the present disclosure may be configured as a program product that is stored in a durable and tangible computer-readable storage medium and can be distributed to the market.
- the program product contains instructions that are executed by a computer and allows the computer to function as the facility ID reception portion S 130 , the area information acquisition portion S 120 and S 150 , the position information acquisition portion S 140 , the determination portion S 160 through S 180 , and the user ID transmission portion S 190 included in the vehicular assistance device 2 according to a first aspect.
- the program product can be installed in one or more computers and can provide effects similar to the effects provided by the vehicular assistance device according to the present disclosure.
- the program product according to the present disclosure is stored in ROM or flash memory of the computer and may be loaded into the computer from the ROM or the flash memory or may be loaded into the computer via a network.
- the program product may be recorded on various forms of computer-readable recording media for use.
- the recording media include portable semiconductor memory (e.g., USB memory).
- the present disclosure provides an assistance information reception method.
- the assistance information reception method includes a facility ID reception step, an area information acquisition step, a position information acquisition step, a determination step, and a user ID transmission step.
- the facility ID reception step corresponds to the process performed by the assistance information reception method facility ID reception portion S 130 .
- the area information acquisition step corresponds to the process performed by the area information acquisition portion S 120 and S 150 .
- the position information acquisition step corresponds to the process performed by the position information acquisition portion S 140 .
- the determination step corresponds to the process performed by the determination portion S 160 through S 180 .
- the user ID transmission step corresponds to the process performed by the user ID transmission portion S 190 .
- the use of this method can provide effects similar to the effects provided by the system 1 including the vehicular assistance device 2 according to the present disclosure.
- the microcomputer 22 a in the vehicular assistance device 2 reads the area information stored in the map DB 21 and determines whether or not the current position of the vehicle 20 belongs to the setup range of the facility 30 as an example. It should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
- the microcomputer 22 a may acquire the area information corresponding to the facility ID (received from access point AP) from the center server 4 a via mobile communication unit MC each time the determination is performed.
- the area information need not always indicate the setup range and the setup intensity.
- the area information may simply indicate a position (position information) of the facility 30 .
- the microcomputer 22 a may compare the position information of the vehicle 20 with the position information of the facility 30 corresponding to the facility ID (received from access point AP) and may determine whether the vehicle 20 is within a predetermined distance from the facility 30 .
- the center server 4 a transmits assistance information to the vehicular assistance device 2 .
- the facility-side device 3 may directly transmit assistance information to the vehicular assistance device 2 .
- the method to directly transmit the assistance information from the facility-side device 3 to the vehicular assistance device 2 may use Near Field Communication based on access point AP or provide a mobile communication unit for the facility-side device 3 and allow the mobile communication unit to use the wireless communication.
- the above embodiment has described the parking area system 1 as a system including the vehicular assistance device 2 . It should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
- the system may be used for an airport instead of the shopping mall.
- the system may be also used for a shop with no parking area being provided.
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Abstract
Description
- This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-228414 filed on Nov. 1, 2013, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
- The present disclosure relates to a vehicular assistance device, a program product, and an assistance information reception method, each of which performs a wireless communication with a facility-side device installed at a facility to receive assistance information useful to a user from the facility-side device.
- Conventionally, there is known a parking area system that aims at enabling effective use of a parking area provided together with a shop. The parking area system is configured so that, when a vehicle approaches a facility (e.g., parking area or shop), an in-vehicle device transmits a user ID, which is used for identifying a user, to a facility-side device. When the facility-side device confirms the user ID, the facility-side device transmits information associated with the user to the in-vehicle device. For example, the information associated with a user includes information to provide leading customers with special parking spaces, special benefit information, and information from shops that meet preferences of users extracted from the Internet usage history (e.g., see patent literature 1). In the description below, these kinds of information will be referred to as assistance information because the information is useful to users (that is, the information supports users).
- The prior-art parking area system may allow the in-vehicle device to transmit a user ID to an invalid access point (hereinafter referred to as an “unauthorized access point”) in response to a transmission request from the unauthorized access point. The user ID also provides, to the unauthorized access point, information capable of specifying behavior of the user or the vehicle. The information may be abused by a third party that installed the unauthorized access point.
- [Patent Literature 1] JP 2005-346413 A
- In view of the foregoing difficulties, it is an object of the present disclosure to provide a vehicular assistance device, a program product, and an assistance information reception method, each of which is capable of suppressing the information from leaking to a third party from the vehicular assistance device which receives the assistance information from a facility-side device.
- According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a vehicular assistance device, which is equipped to a vehicle, includes a facility ID reception portion, an area information acquisition portion, a position information acquisition portion, a determination portion, and a user ID transmission portion. The vehicular assistance device performs a wireless communication with a facility-side device that transmits assistance information useful to a user, and the vehicular assistance device receives the assistance information from the facility-side device.
- The facility ID reception portion receives a facility ID from the facility-side device. Herein, the facility ID is used for identifying a facility to which the facility-side device is installed.
- The area information acquisition portion acquires area information related to a position of the facility.
- The position information acquisition portion acquires position information of the vehicle.
- The determination portion, when the facility ID reception portion receiving the facility ID from the facility-side device, determines whether the received facility ID is valid or not based on the position information of the vehicle and the area information that is related to the position of the facility corresponding to the received facility ID.
- The user ID transmission portion, under a condition that the determination portion determines that the received facility ID is valid, transmits, to the facility-side device, a user ID as a request for transmitting the assistance information, and the user ID being used for identifying the user.
- With the above configuration, in a case where an invalid access point transmits a facility ID to the vehicular assistance device, the position of the facility based on the facility ID may be determined to differ from the current position of the vehicle in the vehicular assistance device. In such a case, the vehicular assistance device does not transmit the request (containing user ID) requiring transmitting of the assistance information to the unauthorized access point.
- Thus, in the vehicular assistance device which receives the assistance information from the facility-side device, information leakage to a third party can be suppressed. For example, in the vehicular device according to the present disclosure, when the current position of the vehicle is determined to be included in the setup range including the position of the facility identified by the received facility ID, the facility is determined to be the valid facility. Thus, the vehicular assistance device does not transmit a request (containing user ID) requiring a transmitting of the assistance information to any one unauthorized access point outside the setup range. This can appropriately prevent the information from leaking to a third party.
- According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, a program product, which is stored in a non-transitory tangible computer readable storage medium and can be distributed to the market, includes instructions performed by a computer for controlling the computer to function as the facility ID reception portion, the area information acquisition portion, the position information acquisition portion, the determination portion, and the user ID transmission portion included in the vehicular assistance device according to the first aspect of the present disclosure.
- With the above program product, advantages similar to the advantages provided by the vehicular assistance device according to the first aspect of the present disclosure can be provided.
- According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, an assistance information reception method, which enables a vehicular assistance device equipped to a vehicle to perform a wireless communication with a facility-side device, is provided. The facility-side device transmits assistance information useful to a user and the vehicular assistance device receives the assistance information from the facility-side device. The assistance information reception method includes a facility ID reception step receiving a facility ID from the facility-side device and the facility ID being used for identifying a facility to which the facility-side device is installed, an area information acquisition step acquiring area information related to a position of the facility, a position information acquisition step acquiring position information of the vehicle, a determination step, when the facility ID is received from the facility-side device in the facility ID reception step, determining whether the received facility ID is valid or not based on the position information of the vehicle and the area information that is related to the position of the facility corresponding to the received facility ID, and a user ID transmission step, under a condition that the received facility ID is determined to be valid in the determination step, transmitting, to the facility-side device, a user ID as a request for transmitting the assistance information and the user ID being used for identifying the user.
- With the above assistance information reception method, advantages similar to the advantages provided by the vehicular assistance device according to the first aspect of the present disclosure can be provided.
- The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description made with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings:
-
FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an entire configuration of a system including a vehicular assistance device; -
FIG. 1B is a diagram illustrating a setup range of a facility; -
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the vehicular assistance device and a facility-side device; -
FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an assistance information transmission process performed by the facility-side device; and -
FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an assistance information reception process performed by the vehicular assistance device. - The following will describe a
parking area system 1 as an embodiment of a vehicular system including a vehicular assistance device according to the present disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings. - As illustrated in
FIGS. 1A and 1B , theparking area system 1 according to the present embodiment includes avehicular assistance device 2 equipped to avehicle 20, a facility-side device 3 installed at afacility 30, and aserver 4 provided on the Internet. - In the
parking area system 1, the facility-side device 3 transmits assistance information or information useful to users (i.e., information to support users) to thevehicular assistance device 2 by performing a wireless communication between thevehicular assistance device 2 and the facility-side device 3. For example, the assistance information includes information to provide leading customers with special parking spaces, special benefit information, and information from shops that meet preferences of users extracted from the Internet usage history. Providing such information to users can give favors to the users and improve an ability to attract more customers to thefacility 30. - In the
parking area system 1 according to the present embodiment, when thevehicle 20 enters a range within a predetermined distance approximately around a position of thefacility 30, the facility-side device 3 transmits the assistance information to thevehicular assistance device 2, which is equipped to thevehicle 20. The assistance information is notified to a user (e.g., a driver) of thevehicle 20 who passes by an area near thefacility 30 before passing by the facility. Thus, it is expected that the user may be attracted by the information and guided to thefacility 30. A manager of thefacility 30 can freely set the predetermined distance within which the assistance information is distributed. Setting the predetermined distance prescribes a range of place that contains the position of thefacility 30 and is capable of transmitting the assistance information from the facility-side device 3 to thevehicular assistance device 2. This range is hereinafter referred to as a “setup range.” - For example, the
facility 30 has a shopping mall tenanted by several shops and the shopping mall is provided with a parking area. According to the present embodiment, several access points AP are provided at predetermined points in the outdoor parking area. Access point AP is provided to exchange various kinds of information with thevehicular assistance device 2 based on communication (hereinafter referred to as Near Field Communication) using Near Field Communication standards such as WiFi (registered trademark) or Bluetooth (registered trademark). Access point AP is included in the facility-side device 3. - The
vehicle 20 is equipped with a tire pressure monitoring system (hereinafter referred to as “TPMS”). In thevehicle 20, direct TPMS is used. Specifically, sensor transmitter SS is installed inside a tire or a wheel. Sensor transmitter SS detects an air pressure or a temperature of the tire. Information (hereinafter referred to as “tire air pressure information”) indicating a detection result is periodically and wirelessly transmitted to a communication unit CR disposed in the vehicle. According to the present disclosure, sensor transmitter SS functions as a tire air pressure information transmission portion. - In the vehicle, for example, the communication unit CR is connected to a
navigation system 6 included in thevehicular assistance device 2. Thenavigation system 6 may determine that the air pressure does not satisfy a reference value, based on the tire air pressure information received via communication unit CR. In such a case, thenavigation system 6 alerts a user using a display device or an audio output device (unshown). As part of Near Field Communication, access point AP is configured to be able to receive the tire air pressure information transmitted from the sensor transmitter SS. The tire air pressure information simply indicates the air pressure, the temperature, or the location of a tire. In the present disclosure, suppose that the tire air pressure information does not contain information related to the user or thevehicle 20. Thenavigation system 6 is connected with the mobile communication unit MC, which is connected to a mobile telephone network (unshown). The mobile communication unit MC is able to connect to the Internet network through the mobile telephone network. Thus, users can browse through homepages available on the Internet, for example. - The
server 4 includes acenter server 4 a and afacility server 4 b. - The
facility server 4 b publishes a homepage of thefacility 30 on the Internet. The homepage of thefacility 30 is published as an EC site and contains various information related to shops such as merchandise supplied from the shops in thefacility 30. When log in to the homepage of thefacility 30, a user may browse through web pages using thenavigation system 6 or various terminals such as a mobile phone, a smartphone, and a PC. Then, the terminal transmits information (hereinafter referred to as “browse information”) indicating the user's browsing action to thefacility server 4 b. Thefacility server 4 b receives the browse information from the user's terminal and stores the Internet usage history based on the browse information corresponding to a user ID. The user ID provides information to identify the user and may be used to log in to the homepage of thefacility 30. The user's terminal transmits the user ID together with the browse information to thefacility server 4 b. - The
center server 4 a collects information needed to operate theparking area system 1. Thecenter server 4 a stores information (hereinafter referred to as “area information”) indicating the setup range and setup intensity (to be described later) in addition to the assistance information as a database corresponding to each facility 30 (facility ID to be described later). A facility manager is in charge of updating the assistance information and the area information. Thecenter server 4 a preliminarily registers information related to a user such as the user ID. The information related to users is hereinafter referred to as “user information.” The user information contains a telephone number assigned to mobile communication unit MC as well as the user ID. When the facility manager updates the area information, thecenter server 4 a transmits an update request (to be described later) to all mobile communication units MC contained in the user information. Thecenter server 4 a can acquire information such as the Internet usage history concerning each user from thefacility server 4 b via the Internet network and store the acquired information. - The description below explains configurations of the
vehicular assistance device 2 and the facility-side device 3 according to the present embodiment. - As illustrated in
FIG. 2 , thevehicular assistance device 2 according to the present embodiment includes a map database (hereinafter referred to as a “map DB”) 21, acontroller 22, and astorage 23 in addition to thenavigation system 6, the sensor transmitter SS, the communication unit CR, and the mobile communication unit MC described above. - The
navigation system 6 detects a position of thevehicle 20 based on a positioning signal from a positioning satellite included in GPS and a detection signal from a distance sensor or a gyroscope. Thenavigation system 6 also calculates a route to a user-specified destination based on map data stored in themap DB 21 and performs a known navigation process for route guidance. Thenavigation system 6 supplies thecontroller 22 with position information indicating a current position of thevehicle 20 in response to a request from thecontroller 22. - The communication unit CR supplies the
navigation system 6 with the tire air pressure information received from the sensor transmitter SS. The communication unit CR uses Near Field Communication so as to be capable of exchanging various kinds of information with the access points AR - For example, the
map DB 21 may be provided by a hard disk drive. Themap DB 21 stores map data used in thenavigation system 6 together with the area information and the position information of thefacility 30 corresponding to information used for identifying the facility 30 (hereinafter, information for identifying the facility is referred to as “facility ID”) . - For example, the
storage 23 is provided by a nonvolatile memory and stores a program performed by thecontroller 22 according to the present embodiment. - The
controller 22 includes amicrocomputer 22 a and a measuringcircuit 22 b. Themicrocomputer 22 a includes a CPU, ROM, and RAM. The measuringcircuit 22 b measures the radio field strength (reception strength) when communication unit CR receives a wireless signal transmitted from the access point AR Themicrocomputer 22 a performs an assistance information reception process (to be described later) based on a program stored in thestorage 23. - The facility-
side device 3 includes a network interface (hereinafter referred to as a “network IF”) 31, a timer 32, acontroller 33, and astorage 34 in addition to the access point AP described above. The network IF 31 provides a connection to the Internet network. The timer 32 measures the time elapsed after the access point AP transmits a facility ID toward outside. Thecontroller 33 includes amicrocomputer 33 a. Thestorage 34 stores a program performed by thecontroller 33. Themicrocomputer 33 a performs an assistance information transmission process described below based on a program stored in thestorage 34. - When the assistance information transmission process as illustrated in
FIG. 3 starts, themicrocomputer 33 a in the facility-side device 3 proceeds to S10 and determines whether or not tire air pressure information is received via the access point AP. If determining that the tire air pressure information is received (S10; YES), themicrocomputer 33 a proceeds to S20. If determining that the tire air pressure information is not received (S10; NO), the microcomputer enters a wait state. - At S20, the
microcomputer 33 a transmits a wireless signal to the outside from the access point AR The wireless signal contains the facility ID of thefacility 30 to which the facility-side device 3 is installed. - At S30, the
microcomputer 33 a determines whether or not the elapsed time (after transmission of the facility ID from the access point AP to the outside at S20) measured by the timer 32 exceeds a predetermined wait time. If determining that the elapsed time exceeds the predetermined wait time (S30; YES), themicrocomputer 33 a returns to S10. If determining that the elapsed time does not exceed the predetermined wait time (S30; NO), themicrocomputer 33 a proceeds to S40. - At S40, the
microcomputer 33 a determines whether a transmission request for the assistance information is received via the access point AP from thevehicular assistance device 2. If determining that the request for transmitting the assistance information is received (S40; YES), themicrocomputer 33 a proceeds to S50. If determining that the request for transmitting the assistance information is not received (S40; NO), themicrocomputer 33 a returns to S30. - A user ID is contained in the request for transmitting the assistance information which is received at S30. At S50, the
microcomputer 33 a wirelessly transmits the assistance information associated with the user ID to thevehicular assistance device 2 and returns to S10. According to the present embodiment, themicrocomputer 33 a transmits an instruction to thecenter server 4 a connected to the Internet network via the network IF 31 in order to wirelessly transmit the assistance information associated with the user ID, which is received at S30, to thevehicular assistance device 2. The instruction contains the facility ID of thefacility 30 where the facility-side device 3 is installed. When receiving the instruction, thecenter server 4 a selects assistance information appropriate to the user ID out of the assistance information corresponding to the facility ID. For example, the assistance information appropriate to the user ID includes information to provide a special parking space for a leading customer or information from a shop suited for user preferences extracted from the special benefit information or the Internet usage history. Based on user information corresponding to the user ID, thecenter server 4 a transmits the selected assistance information to the mobile communication unit MC of thevehicular assistance device 2. - With reference to
FIG. 4 , the description below explains the assistance information reception process performed by themicrocomputer 22 a of thevehicular assistance device 2. - The assistance information reception process starts as illustrated in
FIG. 4 . At S110, themicrocomputer 22 a of thevehicular assistance device 2 determines whether or not an update request is received from thecenter server 4 a via mobile communication unit MC. If determining that the update request is received (S110; YES), themicrocomputer 22 a proceeds to S120. If determining that the update request is not received (S110; NO), themicrocomputer 22 a proceeds to S130. - At S120, the
microcomputer 22 a transmits a transmission request, which request for the transmitting of the updated area information, to thecenter server 4 a via mobile communication unit MC. In response to the request, thecenter server 4 a transmits the area information (containing the facility ID). Themicrocomputer 22 a receives the area information via mobile communication unit MC and uses the received area information to update the area information (corresponding to the received facility ID) stored in themap DB 21. - At S130, the
microcomputer 22 a determines whether or not communication unit CR receives a wireless signal containing the facility ID from the access point AP. If determining that the facility ID is received (S130), themicrocomputer 22 a proceeds to S140. If determining that the facility ID is not received (S130; NO), themicrocomputer 22 a returns to S110. - At S140, the
microcomputer 22 a outputs, to thenavigation system 6, a request for acquiring the position information of thevehicle 20 from thenavigation system 6. - At S150, the
microcomputer 22 a reads, from themap DB 21, the area information corresponding to the facility ID received at S130. - At S160, the
microcomputer 22 a determines whether or not the detected current position of thevehicle 20 is included in the setup range indicated by the area information, based on the position information acquired at S140 and the area information read at S150. If determining that thevehicle 20 is positioned within the setup range (S160; YES), themicrocomputer 22 a proceeds to S170. If determining that thevehicle 20 is positioned outside the setup range (S160; NO), themicrocomputer 22 a returns to S110. - At S170, the
microcomputer 22 a reads out, from the measuringcircuit 22 b, the reception strength of the wireless signal received at S130, and determines whether or not the reception strength is stronger than or equal to a predetermined setup intensity, based on the area information read at S150. When determining that the reception strength is stronger than or equal to the setup intensity (S170; YES), themicrocomputer 22 a proceeds to S180. If determining that the reception strength is weaker than the setup intensity (S170; NO), themicrocomputer 22 a returns to S110. - The setup intensity is predetermined based on a predetermined distance (see
FIG. 1B ) and is used as a second index to determine whether or not the current position of thevehicle 20 is detected within the setup range indicated by the area information. The relation between the reception strength and the distance (between access point AP and the vehicle 20) varies with eachvehicle 20 or situations around thevehicle 20. To suppress the variation, for example, themicrocomputer 22 a may variably set the setup intensity or correct the reception strength based on the radio field strength (the strength of a radio wave received from a base station) of mobile communication unit MC. - At S180, the
microcomputer 22 a determines that the facility ID received at S130 is valid ID. - At S190, the
microcomputer 22 a allows communication unit CR to externally transmit a wireless signal containing the user ID as a request to transmit the assistance information. - At S200, the
microcomputer 22 a allows communication unit CR to receive the assistance information from the facility-side device 3. Themicrocomputer 22 a outputs an instruction to notify a user of the received assistance information on thenavigation system 6 and returns to S110. A display device or an audio output device included in thenavigation system 6 notifies the user of the assistance information. - In the above-described
parking area system 1 according to the present embodiment, when thevehicular assistance device 2 receives, from the access point AP, a facility ID used for identifying thefacility 30 to which the facility-side device 3 is installed, thevehicular assistance device 2 determines whether or not the facility ID is valid, based on the area information related to thefacility 30 corresponding to the facility ID and the position information of thevehicle 20. Thevehicular assistance device 2 transmits a request (containing user ID) for transmitting the assistance information to access point AP under a condition that the facility ID is determined to be valid. - Suppose that an invalid access point (unauthorized access point) transmits a facility ID to the
vehicular assistance device 2. In this case, the position of thefacility 30 based on the facility ID may be determined to differ from the current position of thevehicle 20 in thevehicular assistance device 2. In such a case, thevehicular assistance device 2 does not transmit the request (containing user ID) for transmitting the assistance information to the unauthorized access point. This can prevent the information from leaking to an unauthorized third party. - The
parking area system 1 determines whether a facility ID is valid or not when thevehicular assistance device 2 determines that the current position of thevehicle 20 is detected within the setup range containing the position of thefacility 30 based on the facility ID. Thevehicular assistance device 2 does not transmit a request (containing user ID) for transmitting the assistance information to any one unauthorized access point outside the setup range. This can appropriately prevent the information from leaking to a third party. - The
vehicular assistance device 2 determines whether or not the reception strength of a wireless signal transmitted from access point AP is stronger than or equal to the setup intensity. Theparking area system 1 determines the facility ID to be invalid when the reception strength is weaker than the setup intensity. Theparking area system 1 double-checks the determination whether or not the current position of thevehicle 20 is detected within the setup range, namely, based on the determination using the position information of thevehicle 20 and the determination using the reception strength of a wireless signal. This can mutually complement errors differing in both determinations and consequently improve the accuracy to determine the facility ID. - The
parking area system 1 predetermines the area information indicating the setup range or the setup intensity for eachfacility 30. The area information is stored in thecenter server 4 a on the Internet and is delivered to thevehicular assistance device 2 each time the area information is updated. Thus, the manager of thefacility 30 can easily change the area information, improving the degree of freedom in settings. - The
parking area system 1 detects thevehicle 20 by using TPMS installed to thevehicle 20 and allowing access point AP to receive the tire air pressure information which is always transmitted from sensor transmitter SS. Thus, there is no need to add an additional configuration to the facility-side device 3 of theparking area system 1 as an image sensor for detecting thevehicle 20 that approaches thefacility 30. - In the present disclosure, the process at S130 performed by the
microcomputer 22 a functions as a facility ID reception portion. The process at S120 and S150 performed by themicrocomputer 22 a functions as an area information acquisition portion. The process at S140 performed by themicrocomputer 22 a functions as a position information acquisition portion. The process at S160 through S180 performed by themicrocomputer 22 a functions as a determination portion. The process at S190 performed by themicrocomputer 22 a functions as a user ID transmission portion. - It is noted that a flowchart or the processing of the flowchart in the present disclosure includes sections (also referred to as steps), each of which is represented, for instance, as S10. Further, each section can be divided into several sub-sections while several sections can be combined into a single section. Furthermore, each of thus configured sections can be also referred to as a circuit, device, module, or means.
- Each or any combination of sections explained in the above can be achieved as (i) a software section in combination with a hardware unit (e.g., computer) or (ii) a hardware section, including or not including a function of a related apparatus; furthermore, the hardware section (e.g., integrated circuit, hard-wired logic circuit) may be constructed inside of a microcomputer.
- Moreover, the present disclosure may be configured as a program product that is stored in a durable and tangible computer-readable storage medium and can be distributed to the market. The program product contains instructions that are executed by a computer and allows the computer to function as the facility ID reception portion S130, the area information acquisition portion S120 and S150, the position information acquisition portion S140, the determination portion S160 through S180, and the user ID transmission portion S190 included in the
vehicular assistance device 2 according to a first aspect. - The program product can be installed in one or more computers and can provide effects similar to the effects provided by the vehicular assistance device according to the present disclosure. The program product according to the present disclosure is stored in ROM or flash memory of the computer and may be loaded into the computer from the ROM or the flash memory or may be loaded into the computer via a network.
- The program product may be recorded on various forms of computer-readable recording media for use. The recording media include portable semiconductor memory (e.g., USB memory).
- Furthermore, the present disclosure provides an assistance information reception method. The assistance information reception method includes a facility ID reception step, an area information acquisition step, a position information acquisition step, a determination step, and a user ID transmission step. The facility ID reception step corresponds to the process performed by the assistance information reception method facility ID reception portion S130. The area information acquisition step corresponds to the process performed by the area information acquisition portion S120 and S150. The position information acquisition step corresponds to the process performed by the position information acquisition portion S140. The determination step corresponds to the process performed by the determination portion S160 through S180. The user ID transmission step corresponds to the process performed by the user ID transmission portion S190. The use of this method can provide effects similar to the effects provided by the
system 1 including thevehicular assistance device 2 according to the present disclosure. - While there has been described the embodiment of the present disclosure, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment but is applicable to various modes within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.
- In the
parking area system 1 according to the above embodiment themicrocomputer 22 a in thevehicular assistance device 2 reads the area information stored in themap DB 21 and determines whether or not the current position of thevehicle 20 belongs to the setup range of thefacility 30 as an example. It should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited thereto. - Specifically, the area information need not be stored in the
map DB 21. Themicrocomputer 22 a may acquire the area information corresponding to the facility ID (received from access point AP) from thecenter server 4 a via mobile communication unit MC each time the determination is performed. - Specifically, the area information need not always indicate the setup range and the setup intensity. For example, the area information may simply indicate a position (position information) of the
facility 30. In this case, themicrocomputer 22 a may compare the position information of thevehicle 20 with the position information of thefacility 30 corresponding to the facility ID (received from access point AP) and may determine whether thevehicle 20 is within a predetermined distance from thefacility 30. - In the
parking area system 1 according to the above embodiment, thecenter server 4 a transmits assistance information to thevehicular assistance device 2. It should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited thereto. The facility-side device 3 may directly transmit assistance information to thevehicular assistance device 2. The method to directly transmit the assistance information from the facility-side device 3 to thevehicular assistance device 2 may use Near Field Communication based on access point AP or provide a mobile communication unit for the facility-side device 3 and allow the mobile communication unit to use the wireless communication. - The above embodiment has described the
parking area system 1 as a system including thevehicular assistance device 2. It should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the system may be used for an airport instead of the shopping mall. The system may be also used for a shop with no parking area being provided. - While the disclosure has been described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not limited to the preferred embodiments and constructions. The disclosure is intended to cover various modification and equivalent arrangements. In addition, while the various combinations and configurations, which are preferred, other combinations and configurations, including more, less or only a single element, are also within the spirit and scope of the disclosure.
Claims (8)
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PCT/JP2014/005269 WO2015064042A1 (en) | 2013-11-01 | 2014-10-17 | In-vehicle assistance device, software product, and assistance-information reception method |
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US9959749B2 (en) | 2018-05-01 |
JP6225645B2 (en) | 2017-11-08 |
WO2015064042A1 (en) | 2015-05-07 |
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DE112014004978B4 (en) | 2022-05-25 |
JP2015089079A (en) | 2015-05-07 |
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